Taking a Thursday tour

Du Bois Institute opens Rudenstine Gallery for summer tours

July 24, 2012 |
Editor's Pick

Photos by Thomas Earle/Harvard Staff Photographer

A detail of "Ecstatic Antibodies: Every Moment Counts" by Rotimi Fani-Kayode hangs in the Rudenstine Gallery at Harvard's W.E.B. Du Bois Institute. The gallery offers summer tours at noon on Thursdays.

Sheldon Cheek, senior curatorial associate for the Image of the Black in Western Art Project and Photo Archive, leads a tour through the Rudenstine Gallery, which features the traveling exhibit “Queloides."

Featuring works by prominent Afro-Cuban artists, “Queloides” draws its title from the Spanish word for scar. The exhibit examines the persistence of racism and racial discrimination in contemporary Cuba and elsewhere in the world.

“These artworks show how the age-old social issue of racism is coming more to the fore between Afro-Cubans and the Cuban government, as well as the people of more Hispanic heritage,” Cheek said. “And yet, not much has been said about it. It’s an issue that has largely been left undiscussed, particularly outside Havana, where a lot of tourists don’t go.”

Some of the pieces, such as “Blood and Honor” by Armando Mariño, mine imagery from American history and culture. “Reusing these images shows how racial aspects of marginalized people are represented by the mainstream culture in books, literature, and published illustrations,” Cheek said. “What’s interesting is that these images were used by both sides, both abolitionists and proponents of slavery, for their own purposes. It’s a very nuanced thing, and speaks to the power of these images.

A detail of "Ecosystem" by Douglas Perez is among the pieces on exhibit.

“The art really addresses the mistreatment of people who are on the wrong side of colonialism. Ultimately the artist is asking, does this still happen in Cuba today? These artists are saying yes, there still is suppression and a power elite that excludes other people who are considered problematic,” he added.

Featuring works by Maria Magdalena Campos-Pons, Douglas Perez, Alexis Esquivel, and Manuel Arenas, the exhibit has toured Havana, Pittsburgh, and New York City, and will be on display at the Rudenstine Gallery through Aug. 31. In addition to “Queloides,” the tour also examines works by Isaac Julien, Romare Bearden, Lyle Ashton-Harris, Suesan Stovall, Charles White, and Hale Woodruff, as well as an extensive assortment of black film posters.

Works by Maria Magdalena Campos-Pons are part of the exhibit, which has toured Havana, Pittsburgh, and New York City, and will be on display at the Rudenstine Gallery through Aug. 31.

“It’s all about race, humanity, and how people treat one another, and representing those dynamics in art. It’s also about power — who has it and who doesn’t have it,” Cheek said. “It’s highly subjective, but very powerful.”

A detail of "Ecstatic Antibodies: Every Moment Counts" by Rotimi Fani-Kayode hangs in the Rudenstine Gallery at Harvard's W.E.B. Du Bois Institute. The gallery offers summer tours at noon on Thursdays.

Bart Bonikowski, an associate professor who studies political sociology and nationalist political movements, discusses the seeming resurgence of white supremacist and nationalist groups in the wake of the weekend violence in Charlottesville, Va.

Harvard’s presidential search committee, comprising the 12 members of the University’s Corporation other than the president along with three members of the Board of Overseers, has announced the membership of the faculty and staff advisory committees for the search.

“It often seems that partisans believe they are so correct that others will eventually come to see the obviousness of their correctness,” said Todd Rogers of the Harvard Kennedy School about his new research.

Artists and scholars gathered at the Arthur M. Sackler Museum Nov. 3 for a panel discussion on the work of 20th-century artist Romare Bearden. The event celebrated “Color and Construction: The Intimate Vision of Romare Bearden,” which runs through Dec. 9.